Dead for the Winter

After a lonely spell, where only her work as a victims advocate in the small desert town of Old Dudley, Arizona, keeps her busy, Chloe Newcombe meets Terry Barnett. He is the most attractive man she has known since she and her lover mutually parted, and she is enjoying his company. Terry tells her she's easy to talk to and that he needs to confide in someone. But when she finds out he is married, she writes him off and decides to forget about him. Then she goes out one night on assignment and wishes she had listened. Terry has been murdered.

Unbeknownst to her, there has been a witness to each of her encounters with the dead man, and the bulldog sheriff would very much like to hold her as a suspect. Eventually, her involvement with Terry and a problem with one of her cases affects her work, and her boss encourages (in reality, orders) her to take a vacation. With her job and reputation in danger, Chloe plunges herself into finding Terry's killer in order to prove her innocence.

She seeks out the people he has left behind: his widow, who has gone into hiding; his estranged brother, who commissions Chloe's help; and an intimidating therapist with an ax to grind. But most intriguing of these is a "phantom" from Terry's past whom he mentioned just before his murder. Chloe's investigation leads her on a search for this woman who disappeared twenty years ago---a woman no one missed until now. As the details of Terry's life reveal his family drama and the unspoken fears leading up to his death, Chloe finds herself entangled in a story of obsession and betrayal.


Genre: Mystery